Berkeley #23 1955

Richard Diebenkorn made this painting, "Berkeley #23," at some point, and probably with oil paint. Look at how the colors just sort of sit next to each other, not blending so much as vibing together. That’s what I call process, when you can see how the painting happened. The surface is where it's at, right? You can practically feel the push and pull of the brush, the thick globs of paint bumping into the canvas. Check out that red section near the bottom – it’s almost like he dragged the color across, leaving these cool trails. It's not just about the color, but about the doing, the physicality of moving paint around. Diebenkorn's process reminds me a lot of Joan Mitchell, both making paintings that are a record of their movements. Both artists remind us that art is less about answers and more about the ongoing questions we ask with color and form.